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Review
. 2021 Dec;1506(1):18-34.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14661. Epub 2021 Aug 2.

Sleep and circadian rhythms: pillars of health-a Keystone Symposia report

Jennifer Cable  1 , Eva Schernhammer  2   3 , Erin C Hanlon  4 , Céline Vetter  5   6 , Jonathan Cedernaes  7 , Nour Makarem  8 , Hassan S Dashti  5   9 , Ari Shechter  10 , Christopher Depner  11 , Ashley Ingiosi  12 , Christine Blume  13 , Xiao Tan  14   15 , Elie Gottlieb  16 , Christian Benedict  14 , Eve Van Cauter  4 , Marie-Pierre St-Onge  17
Affiliations
Review

Sleep and circadian rhythms: pillars of health-a Keystone Symposia report

Jennifer Cable et al. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2021 Dec.

Abstract

The human circadian system consists of the master clock in the suprachiasmatic nuclei of the hypothalamus as well as in peripheral molecular clocks located in organs throughout the body. This system plays a major role in the temporal organization of biological and physiological processes, such as body temperature, blood pressure, hormone secretion, gene expression, and immune functions, which all manifest consistent diurnal patterns. Many facets of modern life, such as work schedules, travel, and social activities, can lead to sleep/wake and eating schedules that are misaligned relative to the biological clock. This misalignment can disrupt and impair physiological and psychological parameters that may ultimately put people at higher risk for chronic diseases like cancer, cardiovascular disease, and other metabolic disorders. Understanding the mechanisms that regulate sleep circadian rhythms may ultimately lead to insights on behavioral interventions that can lower the risk of these diseases. On February 25, 2021, experts in sleep, circadian rhythms, and chronobiology met virtually for the Keystone eSymposium "Sleep & Circadian Rhythms: Pillars of Health" to discuss the latest research for understanding the bidirectional relationships between sleep, circadian rhythms, and health and disease.

Keywords: appetite control; biomarkers; circadian misalignment; circadian rhythm; food timing; shift work; sleep; sleep duration; sleep homeostasis; social jetlag.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests

C.V. serves on the scientific advisory boards of Circadian Lighting Inc., a Diabetes UK funded study, and Chronsulting GmbH. C.V. has also served as a paid consultant to the DoE, and NIOSH.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Later eating timing and variable eating patterns may increase cardiometabolic risk via circadian disruption.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Cross-trait genetic correlations between breakfast skipping and publicly available traits and diseases using LD-score regression. Only significant correlations with P < 0.00022 accounting for 227 tested traits are shown. Point estimates are rg correlations. Error bars indicate 95% CI of rg estimates. PMID = pubmed ID; Rg = correlation estimate.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Forest plots of combined effects sizes from the meta-analyses of “blue blocker” interventions at night and their effects on sleep. Shown are the findings from objectively-estimated measures of sleep efficiency and total sleep time, and self-report measures of sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index rating) and total sleep time. From Ref. .
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Astroglial Ca2++ activity contributes to sleep regulation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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